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Chapter 3
How on earth did things end up like this?
Instead of being held at our estate, the dinner had been arranged in one of the grand banquet halls of the imperial palace.
The imperial musicians, seated quietly in the corner as though they barely existed, played a gentle melody while dozens of servants moved silently through the hall, busily placing dish after dish onto the long dining table.
Three people from the imperial family. Four from ours.
Excluding the Emperor, who claimed to be too busy to attend, and my father, who couldn’t come because he was away managing the territory, there were seven people seated at the table in total.
And needless to say, among those seven, the stars of this gathering were supposed to be Lionel and me…
“Kaien, try some of this.”
“I’m sorry. My stomach doesn’t feel well.”
“Oh, come now… Here, it’s your favorite potato soup. Just a little.”
Yet somehow, the center of attention was someone else entirely.
This is… supposed to be a family meeting?
The Empress was completely occupied with spoon-feeding the First Prince, who had recently come of age, while the prince himself lazily poked at the food on his plate with a fork.
His face was pale from illness, but as expected of the male lead’s blood relative, he was still handsome—a frail-looking pretty boy with a delicate sort of beauty.
What’s the point of that face when his personality is garbage?
If he really felt sick, he should’ve returned to his room.
The fact that he stubbornly stayed seated made it obvious.
He’s deliberately causing trouble.
Was he upset because his younger brother was getting engaged before him?
Then he should’ve simply refused to attend.
I heard the Empress favored him excessively, but… this feels beyond excessive.
I subtly turned my head to look at the male lead I was finally meeting for the first time.
Lionel.
Hair shimmering like melted gold swayed softly beneath the lights.
The heavily shadowed eyes and straight nose visible beneath it still retained traces of boyishness, yet his appearance was beautiful enough that it was hard to look away.
And it wasn’t just his looks that were impressive.
His perfectly upright posture.
His restrained, unnecessary-less movements.
Everything about him revealed a body tempered constantly like a sharpened blade.
Even the way he controlled servants with brief glances and minimal gestures made it clear that he was someone born with the blood of a ruler.
But…
Why is he so expressionless?
Surely a person should feel something in a situation like this.
Embarrassment.
Disappointment.
Awkwardness.
Yet not a single emotion surfaced on Lionel’s face as he silently cut into his steak.
He looked like a doll that had never learned emotions.
Don’t tell me that’s the face people make before a storm…
As memories of the novel’s future events clouded my thoughts, Mother suddenly held out a plate toward me.
“Sweetheart, try some of this. The beef is cooked beautifully.”
“And taste this pie. The cheese is wonderfully rich.”
“Cleanse your palate with some salad too. I think this dressing is fruit-based—it’s deliciously refreshing.”
“This bread is so soft and moist. Try some. Should I spread whipped cream on it? Or butter? Strawberry jam?”
Perhaps because the Empress only paid attention to the First Prince, my family started fussing over only me in response.
I swear I can practically see anger veins popping above everyone’s heads…
As a result, my plate rapidly filled with all sorts of food.
Meanwhile, Lionel’s plate contained only what the servants had placed there.
Between the noisy warmth of both families, he alone seemed to float like an outsider.
Seeing it like this… I actually feel a little bad for him.
Lionel himself looked completely unaffected, but watching it made me uncomfortable.
And before I knew it, the words slipped out.
“Your Highness, could you peel these shrimp for me?”
The moment I slid the shrimp plate toward Lionel, every eye at the table turned toward us.
Apparently everyone had secretly been listening, because even the musicians had stopped playing and were staring at us in shock.
Naturally, my family looked the most horrified.
“Cecil, that’s terribly rude toward His Highness.”
“Yes, I’ll peel them for you instead—”
“No. I want His Highness to do it.”
The way everyone rushed to stop me only made me more stubborn.
Cutting off my brother with deliberate poutiness, I met Lionel’s eyes directly.
“Can’t you?”
“Very well.”
Despite everyone’s stunned reactions, Lionel simply gestured calmly to a servant.
The servant hurried forward and picked up the shrimp plate.
Maybe it was instinctive, because the servant glanced nervously at me as if preparing to peel them himself—but Lionel raised a hand to stop him.
Then he began peeling the shrimp personally.
Still no expression change.
Watching him elegantly separate shell from flesh with a knife and fork nearly made me gasp in admiration.
“Wow…”
Before I knew it, I’d even clapped my hands.
By the time I finished marveling, Lionel had already peeled nearly ten shrimp and placed the plump meat neatly before me.
“Here you are.”
“Thank you, Your Highness. And could you debone this sea bass for me too?”
“Cecil!”
“Of course.”
Once again, Lionel calmly took the plate and began removing the fish bones.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of irritation or displeasure on his face.
Does this really not bother him?
I wanted to know whether he was suppressing his emotions deep down or whether he truly felt empty inside.
But I still couldn’t tell.
…Should I push him a little further?
While I was thinking that, the servant looked close to tears because Lionel kept doing all the servant’s work himself.
Watching the scene, my brother cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Cecil, I’ll debone the fish for you. You know I’m good at it.”
“I know. But I’d rather ask the man who’s going to become my husband. We’ll be eating together for the rest of our lives after marriage, so I want to see how skilled His Highness is.”
“Cecil…”
“You. We’re talking when we get home.”
I ignored Mother’s warning glance and my older sister’s whisper threatening me.
Even if this was the imperial palace, even if my opponent was a prince, if there was room to stretch my legs, then I’d stretch them.
The worst that’ll happen is I get scolded once we’re home.
As long as the imperial family coveted House Roheim’s gold, the Empress couldn’t really touch me.
Trusting only that, I continued trying to hand dishes toward Lionel.
Or rather—I was about to.
SKRREEECH!
The First Prince suddenly scraped his fork loudly across his plate as though demanding attention, forcing me to stop.
“Duke Roheim’s daughter… Was your name Cecilia?”
The First Prince stared directly into my eyes.
He wasn’t actually asking for my name.
He was asking whether he had permission to address me by it.
“Yes. Cecilia Roheim.”
I emphasized Roheim deliberately.
Meaning: Don’t get familiar with me. Use my family name.
But the First Prince merely frowned, clearly missing the point.
“Very well, Cecilia.”
No, you absolutely did not understand.
“Your situation is rather pitiful. Simply because you were born the daughter of a wealthy family, you’ve become a sacrifice for a political marriage.”
“Oh my, a political marriage? Actually, this engagement was decided because I cried and begged for it.”
“You cried and begged… what?”
It wasn’t technically a lie.
I had cried and made a scene over marriage.
Just in the opposite direction.
“Even if it were political, so what? His Highness kindly peels shrimp and removes fish bones for me. And if I marry the Second Prince, I’ll become Empress someday. What greater honor could there be? Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?”
Smiling brightly, I turned toward the Empress.
The answer’s already decided, so all you need to do is say it.
“Of course… For a noble lady, there’s hardly a greater honor than a marriage alliance with the imperial family.”
“Exactly. I have absolutely no complaints about this engagement. I’m very, very happy.”
After saying that, I secretly glanced at Lionel.
As expected, there was still no visible reaction on his face.
Not that I expected some flattering line about how honored he was too, but still…
Even so, how could he react like he was listening to someone else’s story?
Is he really going to become an obsessive male lead later? Right now he looks completely emotionless.
While I sat there pouting slightly to myself—
SCRAAAAPE!
The sound of a chair dragging violently across the floor echoed from the other side of the table.
Turning my head, I saw the First Prince standing abruptly, his flushed face twisted with boiling anger.
Now what’s his problem?
Honestly, it was absurd.
Don’t tell me he got offended just because I talked back once?
